Legal AF by MeidasTouch - Trump GETS SHOCKED as Criminal Cases ACCELERATE

Episode Date: August 4, 2024

Ben Meiselas and Michael Popok are back for the weekend edition of the top-rated Legal AF podcast. On this episode, the anchors discuss and debate: a new hard hitting Order from Judge Chutkan against Trump in the DC Election Interference case (“she’s baaack”); yet another Appeals Court decision against Trump, this one shutting down his efforts to attack the daughter of the judge presiding over his felony convictions in New York; an unshackled Joe Biden who in his last days is taking on Supreme Court reform; and so much more at the intersection of law and politics. Join the Legal AF Patreon: https://Patreon.com/LegalAF Thanks to our sponsors: Miracle Made: Upgrade your sleep with Miracle Made! Go to https://TryMiracle.com/LEGALAF and use the code LEGALAF to claim your FREE 3 PIECE TOWEL SET and SAVE over 40% OFF. Zbiotics: Head to https://zbiotics.com/LegalAF to get 15% off your first order when you use LEGALAF at checkout. Qualia: To boost YOUR NAD+ levels up to 50%, Go to https://qualialife.com/TRUTH for up to 50% off and use code TRUTH at checkout for an additional 15% off. Soul: Go to https://GetSoul.com and use code LEGALAF to get 30% OFF your order! Remember to subscribe to ALL the MeidasTouch Network Podcasts: MeidasTouch: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/meidastouch-podcast Legal AF: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/legal-af MissTrial: https://meidasnews.com/tag/miss-trial The PoliticsGirl Podcast: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-politicsgirl-podcast The Influence Continuum: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-influence-continuum-with-dr-steven-hassan Mea Culpa with Michael Cohen: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/mea-culpa-with-michael-cohen The Weekend Show: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-weekend-show Burn the Boats: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/burn-the-boats Majority 54: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/majority-54 Political Beatdown: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/political-beatdown Lights On with Jessica Denson: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/lights-on-with-jessica-denson On Democracy with FP Wellman: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/on-democracy-with-fpwellman Uncovered: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/maga-uncovered Coalition of the Sane: https://meidasnews.com/tag/coalition-of-the-sane Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do stop losses work on Kraken? Let's say I have a birthday party on Wednesday night, but an important meeting Thursday morning. So sensible me pre-books a taxi for 10 p.m. with alerts. Voila! I won't be getting carried away and staying out till 2. That's Stop Loss Orders on Kraken, an easy way to plan ahead. Go to kraken.com and see what crypto can be. Non-investment advice. Crypto trading involves risk of loss. See kraken.com slash legal slash ca dash pru dash disclaimer

for info on kraken's undertaking to register in Canada. This is an ad by BetterHelp. What are your self-care non-negotiables? It's hard to make time for the things that keep you healthy, but being consistent with self-care is like working a muscle. And when life gets crazy, that muscle keeps you strong. Therapy is the ultimate self-care, and BetterHelp makes it easy to get started

with affordable online sessions you can do from anywhere. Never skip therapy day with BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com to learn more. That's BetterH-E-L-P.com. Well, that was very quick. Over the weekend, Judge Tanya Chutkin, the federal judge in the Washington, D.C. criminal case against Donald Trump, issued an order denying one of the remaining pending motions that had been filed by Donald Trump. And she requested

that the parties brief the issue of how everybody should proceed forthwith in light of the Supreme Court's absolute immunity ruling. Basically, under the statute, the case was sent back from the Supreme Court officially to the district court on Saturday, she issued an order in no time. We will discuss going back to what's happening in the Manhattan criminal case where Donald Trump was convicted on the 34 separate felony counts, lots of developments there this week. Donald Trump lost his attempt to try to remove the remaining aspects of the gag order that's still in place until such time as the sentencing takes place. Donald Trump wants to be able to attack the judge's daughter really badly and he wants

to attack the family members of the district attorney's office. That's essentially all that remains from the gag order And the appellate division was like, dude, you've been convicted. You're, you're a felon. The proceeding is still taking place. Sentencing isn't over. There's no basis for us to remove this gag order. Go away. Also, Donald Trump then filed a recusal motion for the one, two, third time against the presiding

judge in the case where he was already convicted against Justice Mershon. And Trump's arguing, well, now that Vice President Kamala Harris is the presumptive Democratic nominee, somehow that relates to you, Justice Mershon, needing to recuse yourself. The district attorney's office responded, this is vexatious. This is frivolous. He's done this two other times where he has lost already. Just reject it. Judge will talk about that.

Let's also talk about President Biden rolling out Supreme Court reform term limits, ethics guidelines, and no absolute presidential immunity. It's big. It's important. The Republicans are against it, but seems pretty common sense to me. Michael Popok, I want to talk about that. And let's also talk about Donald Trump's lame excuse, why he claims

he can't debate vice president Kamala Harris. He's the guy who said anywhere, anytime, any place. And now he's saying a specific time in my safe space, please. I need my blankie. I only want to do it on Fox. Donald Trump claiming that there's a conflict of interest because he sued George Stephanopoulos and he sued ABC even though he sued them many months ago

before he agreed to do the debate. But Michael Popak isn't this just so Donald Trump sue everybody then use the litigation as basically a pretext to whine and just kind of make excuses. Donald Trump is perhaps the most vexatious litigant in the history of the United States. And as a plaintiff, his record is almost all losses. Michael Popock, how are you doing on this weekend? I'm doing great, Ben.

It's so great to see you. When, when, when Don, when I heard you list his anyplace, anytime debate, I guess he left out any one because the one he doesn't want to debate is going to be the nominee and likely Madam President Kamala Harris certainly doesn't want to get on the stage. And everything that he's about just gets exemplar gets gets magnified standing next to Kamala Harris. It's not just prosecutor versus felon. It is everything that he stands for is against what she embodies and she can bring it to him and counterpunch like no other person can this race to the end for the next hundred days also demonstrates that

Trump world live in an alternate universe when it relates to our justice system If you only followed and that's the problem many of their followers only follow things like Donald Trump wins on a motion to dismiss related to a lawsuit or Donald Trump filed another motion to recuse or disqualify or to attack a judge. If you just live through that prism you think he's winning when in reality in the real world that you and I reside in on planet Earth Donald Trump is losing at every turn. I see people sometimes in our chat during podcasts

or during hot takes and saying, Donald Trump's not being held accountable. And I beg to differ. It may not be at the pace and the velocity at which we would appreciate it. Although those that practice law know that this is probably going about as fast as possible. But look how far we've come

and how everything has turned out of time in the last three weeks. Besides the $300 million in the coffers for Kamala Harris and in just two weeks time, turning completely around all the battleground states and now being ahead where the Biden administration had been behind, which podes incredibly well for this last push

and she's just getting stronger and better every day but look what's happened to the cases Mar-a-Lago that rogue decision to dismiss the indictment is going to be briefed through the 11th circuit over the summer and we're going to get a ruling sometime after it's briefed sometime before the election the 34 count felony conviction we're going to talk about today in New York, that's going to survive multiple attempts to either attack the trial judge or take it up on appeal. We already have one decision from an important appellate court, one that I'm a member of, the first department in New York on the gag order. We're going to talk

about that. He's going to lose all of that as well. And the you've got the, and the 34 count's going to stand. And then you've got Judge Chutkin, as I said in a hot take, no sweeter words have been said recently than the follow, besides Kamala Harris becoming the candidate, is the court has regained jurisdiction over this case, the first line of her order, and the sheriff's back in town. And look how, not that you and I, because we're, we're not, I don't say optimist is the wrong word, because we don't, we don't blow smoke here. But, but there was concern about Trump, Biden, the impact on the cases coming off the immunity decisions coming off the Supreme Court's last gasp of decisions before they took their vacation. like, whew, what's going to happen now?

And now look what we're going to talk about. Supreme court reform led by Biden and Harris, positive developments at the appellate levels with all of these courts, trial judges getting these cases back on track. Where we're supposed to be at the beginning of August. And I'll just leave it on this note. I'm not trying to be cocky. Lord knows I've been accused of that in the past. However, if we're right, then the American people vote with their conscience and the way we think they're

going to vote. And we have Madam President as the President of the United States and President-elect in November. I'm less concerned about the timing of some of these criminal cases than I was before. I wanted the American people to have the public justice to be completed so that people knew whether they were voting for a felon or not. They already know they are because of what happened in New York, but in all the cases. So that's not quite going to happen. But also I'm slightly less concerned

if we have President-elect Kamala Harris, then I'm like, all right, well, sorry, then the trial can be in December, who cares? But we'll see, I wanna get your opinion on that as well. Michael Popak, why don't we just get started though with Judge Chutkin, what she did over this weekend, right? Earlier today, she issued an order moving things along. We know that Judge Chutkin moves quickly.

Judge Chutkin was waiting for this opportunity. Here she says how the court now has jurisdiction over this case. She sets a status conference in this matter for August 16th. She denies Donald Trump's motion to dismiss on statutory grounds. She requests by August 9th, the parties file a brief on the next steps. And so there will be a hearing in the next two weeks or so. The parties will submit a brief very soon as well, where that case is going to move along and I think it is going to move along.

And I think it's gonna move along very, very quickly. I would not be surprised, although I've had this debate with Harry Littman. Harry Littman thinks that there won't be an evidentiary hearing that takes place before the election. I think there could be an evidentiary hearing that takes place before the election on the issues of absolute immunity. The Supreme Court said that Donald Trump or presidents in general, former

presidents, while they were in office, get absolute immunity for core constitutional functions, for official acts for which there should be a strong presumption. The Supreme Court says that what you do in the White House is an official act, but it can be rebutted, a rebuttable presumption. And the Supreme Court said that there is an evidentiary exclusion rule that evidence needs to be excluded at a trial from a jury if it involves official acts or core constitutional function.

So look, Donald Trump has filed a motion to vacate or remove the verdict in the Manhattan criminal case where he was convicted, citing the evidentiary exclusion portion of the Supreme Court's ruling, saying that there were witnesses who testified about things that took place when Donald Trump was in the White House and as a result, the whole verdict should be excluded. The district attorney's office came back and said, judge, you've heard all of this evidence now though, and we don't need to do an evidentiary hearing in the Manhattan district attorney case because there was a trial.

These are not official acts. The presumption has been rebutted that this was done solely for Donald Trump's personal and pecuniary gain, even while he was in office itself. And to the extent anything else came in, it's harmless error, but the verdict should stand. So the question is, and I'll serve it back to you, Michael Popak, is number one, are you surprised Judge Chutkin moving so quickly? And two, do you think that there will be though this evidentiary hearing where Judge Chutkin will say, Jack Smith,

put on your evidence. Let's hear from you about all of the witnesses that you want to call to show that this is not a core constitutional functions and not official acts. Donald Trump, put on your evidence. Are you going to testify? No, your honor, I'm going to plead the fifth. That's my Donald Trump plead the fifth voice. You know, and what I think Jack Smith makes his argument on is essentially a blessing game, uh, interposed into this context of criminal cases,

right? The last thing game in the civil context of absolute immunity said that, look, Trump's conduct involved campaigning on January 6th, it involved his attempt to overthrow a free and fair election. Donald Trump's lawsuits were filed, not as Donald Trump in an official capacity, but Donald Trump running for office in 2020. So use the blasting game. This was campaigning line of argumentation. Take that, put that front and center in an evidentiary hearing before

Judge Tanya Chutkin, Michael Pope. I call in Mark Meadows, right? Call in people like that. Call in the vice president established that? Call in people like that. Call in the vice president. Establish that this was campaigning. Boom, and you make this very, you get a powerful mini trial too before the election. What say you?

Well, in the Littman v. Mycelis case, I have a feeling I'm gonna sigh closer to Mycelis than Littman, but let me give you my, I think, I think. And you and I usually see eye to eye on procedural things, but let me give you my, I think, I think. And you and I usually see eye to eye on procedural things, but let me just, let me do it this way. I'll back into it, but I'll answer the, I'll certainly answer the question.

The, we are watching, as we've always said, a seasoned trial judge who had been a seasoned trial lawyer handling things soberly in her courtroom. This is why we get very quickly as I, the prediction wasn't that hard, that she had 27 or 30 days from when the mandate from the July 1 immunity decision came out to reconvene the case after the DC Court of Appeals gave her a further mandate. I said it was going to be August 2, recognizing that she had already announced she was on vacation on August 5, which is why she issued the order before the vacation and set a status

conference for after the vacation. And while she was at it, there's about four different motions on the docket at various times that were filed. There were all, a pin was stuck in all of them and they were put on ice while the immunity decision was being worked its way through the trial judge and then the DC Court of Appeals first level appeal and then the Supreme Court and that took like a year. So there was things on the docket since like October that she just ruled on against Donald Trump without prejudice. We'll explain that. We'll

do a little Patreon breakout session here for teaching the law. So she went through and she said, what can I decide on like right now that I can just, that impacts also interfaces with my ultimate decision that I've been charged with or ultimate requirement that I map onto the indictment as it exists, the immunity decision, and you, and then do like a waterfall, run it through decision and then do like a waterfall, run it through the immunity decision and see what survives. What overt acts that are in the immunity, the indictment and what counts, there's four counts and one defendant, Donald Trump. Two for obstruction of an official proceeding and two related to defrauding the United States, which has to do with the fake elector scheme and other things about the failure to transition power and the clinging to power, right? Inter to do with the fake elector scheme and other things about the failure to transition power and the clinging to power, right, interfering with the peaceful transition.

So she's been charged by the Supreme Court, her bosses, to do two things. Look at the indictment and see if anything survives in it under what you've outlined in your, when you opened the piece about what is, is there anything that's absolute immunity core constitutional function of the president that's been alleged as part of the indictment? Is there anything that is rebuttable immunity, meaning it's, it's the blasting game, official conduct stretched to its outer boundaries, president wearing the president hat for any of these things, yet it's rebuttable that the prosecutors can rebut that presumption of immunity, although the Supreme Court didn't really tell them how. And then lastly, things that fall into that

little small bucket that they left over, which is unofficial slash private conduct that enjoys no immunity. And she's got to go sort all this through. And that is that evidentiary hearing that you're projecting that you think will happen. And I sort of agree with you. I'll talk about the briefing that would lead to that in a minute. So she's got to do all that. And then in a footnote they said, oh, while you're at it, like you don't have enough to do, why don't you also figure out if two of those counts survive because there was a companion decision a week before in which they got rid of obstruction of an official proceeding applied to most,

if not all, Jan 6th insurrectionists because they didn't get their grubby little hands on the certificates, the actual counting of the certificates. And for the judges, they were like, well, you didn't actually touch the evidence, so, or rip up the documents, so you can't be charged with those crimes.

But they buried, not buried, on page seven or eight of the decision was a little thing helpfully included, I'm sure, by Judge Sotomayor, that if you use false evidence to obstruct an official proceeding, then you could be charged with that crime. And what's the false evidence?

It's the false electoral certificates. It was obviously, that is what's gonna be argued argued and I think that's what's ultimately going to have Judge Chutkin decide to have it survive. That's what she's got to do. Now let's talk about how she does it, the logistics of it, which is what you talked about. She's asking the parties on August the 9th, a week from give or take from today, to propose to her briefing schedules and how to get these immunity issues back on track. Now, Jack Smith could, but I doubt he will, decide that he's going to re-indict Donald Trump and get rid of this indictment and start all over again.

I don't see him doing that. I don't think he has to. I think he knew about the immunity possibility, the immunity decision going, arrived for him, super smart, thought ahead, and has a way. I'm sure he already has the arguments and had them ready at the time he filed. He got the indictment about how he was going to have that indictment survive any type of bad decision by the United States Supreme Court, which he ultimately got. So he's going to stand on that indictment and he's going to point out to her in his briefing, they're going to brief this. We know from past experience, Donald Trump is going to ask for a briefing schedule into 2026, at least 2025, certainly over the election

and the auguration. He doesn't want to deal with this. And Jack Smith's going to say, August, August is a nice time to complete briefing. Why don't we just complete all the briefing in August? And I think the judge is going to be like, well, August is a little tight. How about just after Labor Day? How about everybody gets their full briefing in and we time it out to conclude the week after Labor Day.

It's something like that. And then she'll decide the oral argument slash evidentiary hearing that she thinks she needs. She could go one of two ways. She could say, I don't need an evidentiary hearing. I'm just looking at the four corners of the indictment. I'm looking at the briefing that's been provided to us and my own guidance, my own research. And I'm going to say which is in and which is out and what survives and what doesn't survive. And I don't need to hear about the, you know, I'm not going to put the government to their

proof. However, she could also say, and this is where you come in, I need a full, I want a full evidentiary hearing on this. I need to make a record. The Supreme Court's at my backside. They've told me I didn't do it right the first time. They told me that I was remiss. This is my version, the artist's rendering of Judge Chutkin.

I was remiss in not handling this at the outset, in not putting the government to their proof, and now I'm gonna do it. And maybe I'm gonna overdo it. Belton suspenders. If she's gonna be conservative, she's gonna go the evidentiary hearing route after briefing. Let's assume the briefing is what I said, September.

She could do that evidentiary hearing in September as well, or maybe the beginning of October, but certainly back to you before the election. I think she thinks it's important, and most of the judges do, except the MAGA appointed ones, think it's important for the American people to that this not be in a black to, that this not be in a black box, that this not be in a star chamber, that it be in public, and that they make a

decision in their minds whether this guy's guilty or not, or whether the indictment's going to stand or not before the election. Even though she's not going to, it's not election interference, it's information that the public has a right to know before they make one of the most momentous decisions in our lifetime about whether it's going to be President Kamala Harris or a restoration of the of the of the Trump theocracy slash dictatorship and she's she cares about that all the judge most of the judges of the DC court system care about that issue so I think she does get it up and

running like you said, so I'm now with you on an evidentiary hearing after full briefing, all to be done before the November election, whether Donald Trump and his lawyers like it or not. They're constant bleeding with a T, not a D. They're constant complaining about election interference and we're beyond that. There's no election interference and now the time, the fact that Donald Trump has to account for himself like any other defendant, civil or criminally in cases is not a sign that judges are trying to interfere with his election, but they've got a job to do and they've got cases on the docket that are not stayed and there's things that have to be done.

Sorry if it happens to also land on a political calendar of when he wants to do a rally, or a debate that he's apparently not going to do, or anything else. He's the nominee, we're about to have Kamala Harris as our nominee. Now it's just a mad dash to make closing argument. There's no more primaries. It's just talking to the American people and voting. That's all that's left. So that argument that maybe had some resonance in his world about interference is sort of, for me, as I said earlier, I think sort of has been taken away

by the surge of Kamala Harris. Well said, Michael Popak. When we get back, I want to chat about all of the developments happening in the Manhattan criminal case where Donald Trump was convicted on those 34 separate felony counts, Donald Trump filing his third attempt to try to recuse Justice Mershon, the judge presiding over that case. Also, Donald Trump losing in the appellate division. Popak, you teased a bonus episode that you're going to be dropping on Patreon where you'll

go into a little more detail on some of the issues that you covered there. For those who really want to geek out and get a lecture from Professor Michael Popak, go to Patreon.com slash Legal AF. Patreon.com slash Legal AF. We don't have outside investors here on the Midas Touch Network. However, I am proud to announce that we've been doing 26 million views over a 48-hour period, more than MSNBC, CNN, and Fox, and that is thanks to the Midas Mighty Legal AF community helping grow this thing organically.

We'll be right back after our first quick break. As we age, balancing our social life with next day responsibilities becomes trickier. That's why I'm thrilled to have discovered Zbiotics Pre-Alcohol, a game-changing product for responsible adults who enjoy a drink but have plans the next day. Zbiotics Pre-Alcohol is the world's first genetically engineered probiotic. Invented by PhD scientists, it's designed to address rough mornings after drinking. Here's the science. When you drink, alcohol creates a toxic byproduct in your gut. This byproduct, not dehydration, is what makes you feel rough the next day.

Pre-alcohol Z-Biotic produces an enzyme that breaks down this byproduct. Just make Z-Biotics your first drink of the night. Enjoy responsibly and you're set for a better tomorrow. Since I started using pre-alcohol before social events, I've noticed a significant improvement. After a night out with friends, I wake up feeling refreshed

and ready for my day. Whether I have an important business meeting or a family outing, I can approach my day with confidence. Vacations, weddings, birthdays, and reunions, there's so much going on. Get the most out of your summer plans by stocking up on Zbiotic Pre-Alcohol Now. Go to zbiotics.com slash Legal AF to get 15% off your first order when you use Legal AF at checkout. Pre-Alcohol Zbiotics is backed with a 100% money-back guarantee, so if you're not satisfied for any reason they'll refund your money no questions asked remember to head to zbiotics.com legal AF and use the code legal AF at checkout for 15% off thank you zbiotics for sponsoring this episode and our good times it's hot outside and your nighttime

bedroom temperature has a huge impact on your sleep quality. If you wake up too hot or too cold, I highly recommend you check out Miracle Maid's bedsheets. Using silver infused fabrics inspired by NASA, Miracle Maid sheets are thermo regulating and designed to keep you at the perfect temperature all night long, no matter the weather. So you get better sleep every night.

These sheets are infused with silver that prevent up to 99.7% of bacterial growth, leaving them to stay cleaner and fresh three times longer than other sheets. No more gross odors. Miracle sheets are luxuriously comfortable without the high price tag of other luxury brands. And feel as nice, if not nicer,

than sheets used by some five-star hotels. Stop sleeping on bacteria. Bacteria can clog your pores, causing breakouts and acne. Sleep clean with Miracle. Go to trymiracle.com slash legalaf to try Miracle-Made Sheets today. And whether you're buying them for yourself or as a gift for a loved one,

if you order today, you can save over 40%. And if you use our promo code LegalAF at checkout, you'll get three free towels and save an extra 20%. Miracle is so confident in their product, it's backed with a 30 day money back guarantee. So if you aren't 100% satisfied, you'll get a full refund. Upgrade your sleep with Miracle Made. Go to trymiracle.com slash LegalAF

and use the code LegalAF to claim your free three piece towel set and save over 40% off. Again, that's trymiracle.com slash legal AF to treat yourself. Thank you Miracle Made for sponsoring this episode. We are back. Michael Popak, great ad reads for those incredible sponsors right there.

One great point to mention as well, on Monday, you and I will be hosting a meeting with our partners and associates who joined patreon.com slash legal AF 11 AM Eastern, 8 AM Pacific. Can't wait to be there on the legal AF feed right now. You'll see the secret zoom link. Make sure you join us, ask us your legal questions Monday morning. A lot of developments, Michael Popak, in the Manhattan district attorney criminal case, where Donald Trump was previously convicted by a jury that decided unanimously that he was guilty, guilty, guilty, 34 times over on 34ate felony counts for falsifying business records.

Donald Trump filed with the appellate division to remove the remaining provisions of the gag order, which simply prevent him from attacking a very small group of people. At this point, the gag order has already been modified where Donald Trump can attack witnesses. He can make statements about the jury, although he can't disclose juror identity. So the remaining group of people Donald Trump simply can slam or attack is the judge's daughter. And that's really who Donald Trump wants to go after with his unhinged conspiracies that somehow the daughter's relationship with Vice President

Kamala Harris is unfair to Donald Trump. And he wants to whine about that. Donald Trump also can attack the district attorney, but can't attack staff members of the district attorney and their family members. So that's what remains. Donald Trump went to the appellate division and they said, Donald, go away. You're a convicted felon. What are you talking about?

We've already addressed this issue. Justice Mershon appropriately weighed the first amendment concerns against the fact that you were previously a criminal defendant threatening people. Now circumstances are even worse for you, Donald. You're a convicted felon. Go away. Denied. Also, Donald Trump then filed a motion to recuse Justice Mershon because Donald

Trump is not permitted to attack Justice Mershon's daughter publicly because of the gag order. Donald Trump was like, you know what I'm going to do because I think I'm so smart. Let me file a recusal motion for the third time against Justice Mershon, where I will mention what I believe to be conflicts of interest against Justice Mershon based on his daughter. So I'll mention his daughter in a motion that's been denied three times already before the district attorney's office promptly responded

and said, this is frivolous, this is vexatious, this is the third time Justice Mershon that Donald Trump is doing this. Can we just have enough of this whiny frivolous behavior? Sentencing set to take place in mid September after sentencing is over. The case is going to be, the proceedings will be done. Donald Trump can file his appeals thereafter. Judge, just reject this. Michael Popak, a flurry of activity happening now,

you know, in these cases. And before I pass it to you, one thing I'll just mention too, what's been interesting and I think actually helpful is that when Donald Trump has had his cases, his criminal cases, he comes up with his three or four big lies about the judges, the judges' family, or something about the case.

He can usually stay disciplined and say those four lies over and over again, like a broken record. The surge by Vice President Kamala Harris has actually coincided with a not surge with a lull of developments in the court cases. So when Donald Trump actually has to speak to the national association of black journalists or somewhere outside of his safe space, which is Fox. People hear, Whoa, whoa, what are you doing? You change the national anthem

and you sing it with the J6 insurrectionist who you call the J6 choir. You talk about being electrocuted or eaten by sharks. You keep talking about Hannibal Lecter and you make up that your friends with the fictional cannibal who you says eats people's brains. You talk about hitting the golf balls really hard. You talk about windmills and go well, well, well, you tell this bizarre

story about women weightlifting and you make these like noises where you go like you give speeches in high schools where you talk about making this up folks, where you talk about sex acts like golden showers, you use those words in high schools, you go to churches and lead curse chants with children in churches, you go and give speeches where you call the porn star

who you had sex with while your wife had just given birth a horse face and lead horse face chance, like what? So we get to see this, I think. So, and I don't think it's a coincidence because when he's doing these court cases, it's all the broken record. The judge's daughter, the judge valued Mar-a-Lago at 26 million, it's 1.5 billion, it's so unfair.

Michael Popak, let me pass it to you. Listening to that litany that you just read out, it's like the old joke when they said to Mrs. Lincoln, well, other than that, how was the show? I mean, he's doing terribly. The couple of times his handlers let him out of the friendly confines of Newsmax or somebody's podcast or Fox News, and whose bright idea was it to have him address black journalists in Detroit? And I mean, is there a number lower than zero that he can get of the black vote after that debacle? And as you said, Chicago, right? Oh, I said Detroit. Yeah. Is there a number lower than zero? Because that's where that's where he's going. And what what comes out, whether

it's in the court cases, or it's in these things, is his is his inherent racism and misogyny. If I'm not saying that if Judge Bichon had a son that he wouldn't quite do it this way But he wouldn't quite do it this way if it wasn't Trying to argue that an adult child of a judge who happens to be a woman Doesn't have the right to have her own career and that she's not allowed to work in Democratic fundraising Because her her her father who has no affiliation with the company, is not on its board, doesn't get money from it, has never represented them as a private lawyer, has never had a case in front of him, happens to also be presiding

over a case involving Donald Trump. And it just shows you that now he can't even keep it together. He can't even keep that mask up long enough. His racism comes out immediately in interviews, hard hitting, sure, justifiably hard hitting by black journalists comes out there. And what's happening with Kamala Harris is her very existence in candidacy is driving him mad. And it is pressure. All of these character flaws and racism and misogyny is all coming to a head with this candidate. Like you could not, we could not have developed Kamala Harris better in a lab to go off. It's like weird science to go after, it's like weird science, to go after

Donald Trump and trigger him about all of these things. And so you're right, Ben, because there's very little kind of going on in the court cases, you know, we were reporting on them, but where he can act out, like no more press conferences impromptu in front of those bicycle racks, in front of a ongoing proceeding. He doesn't have those. Even Judge Chutkin in the order that she just issued said, yeah, we're having a hearing on the 16th. You don't have to go, Trump. She literally said, don't, you don't need to be there. So he doesn't have the outlets that he needs. That's why he's got to file these ridiculous lawsuits against ABC News where he knew or should have known was going to be handling one of the debates, go after the Pulitzer

Prize board, go after the judge for the fourth or fifth time. And the warning here, Trump is, because he's a criminal defendant in some of these cases, he doesn't get sanctioned for making these files. You know who gets in trouble and you know who throws away their careers? His lawyers. Jeffrey Clark, who if Donald Trump were to ever get restored to the White House, would be back in the Department of Justice.

Maybe as an attorney general, he's about to lose his law license for his role in obstructing the peaceful transfer of power when he was the number four or five in the Department of Justice and the acting Attorney General for Donald Trump that he might have thought he was doing his clients bidding but the DC bar thinks he should be disbarred and so Andrew Giuliani and Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis And all the other lawyers so this current crop of lawyers for Donald Trump that thinks somehow

other lawyers. So this current crop of lawyers for Donald Trump that thinks somehow they're going to avoid that fate of losing their law licenses for filing frivolous things. Alina Habba, here's a prediction, we'll make this a time capsule. Alina Habba will be sanctioned by some bar association, bar grievance committee at some point for the things that she does and she says for Donald Trump. I have no doubt about that. I'm actually shocked that hasn't happened already. And the other lawyers that are representing him,

like Todd Blanche and this and that, they are on thin ice with most of the things that they've been doing. So let me just end it this way. Practicing in New York, I feel pretty confident about this. Judge Roshan is going to deny another motion for recusal and he'll lecture the lawyers and warn them for having filed this with no new information

and having now been rejected three times. And he may even make a referral, he could make a referral, although I don't think he's going to, to the grievance committee about the lawyers handling these cases. The First Department, Court of Appeals, First Department in New York, which is the first level of appeals that sits in Manhattan, is going to reject, as they just rejected the gag order attempt, or attempt to get rid of the gag order, is going to reject any appeal that comes off of the 34 count felony conviction as soon as it gets to them.

And then it'll wind its way to the Court of Appeals for New York. We just have to track it. But you're right. What we're watching is Donald Trump's frustration and acting out against a superior candidate in Kamala Harris and him having very few avenues to rattle his shiny objects and get attention. That's why we keep getting this broken record of the same old thing over and over again so he can use it to point to how he's being maligned by the court system and by the media and please help me. And I'll just leave it on this. This works to activate and motivate your base.

Okay, but your base and each individual voter can only vote once. You need to make new voters if you are a Republican candidate in order to overcome the electoral advantages of the Democrats and overcome what Joe Biden did seven four years ago and a 7 million popular vote electoral advantage. And then state by state, I defy a Republican strategist. If you got him off the record or her off record to tell me how anything Donald Trump has done since he has been nominated and picked JD Vance has helped bring one new voter over to the Republican side. And then look at Kamala Harris and how she's running her campaign so sophisticatedly, so,

so well. And we're about to get her vice presidential pick probably over the weekend, and people are going to be very, very happy with whoever she picks. And these are the things you judge a presidential candidate on, how they run their campaign. Look at all the professionals, including from the Obama successful campaign she's now brought in to work for. She is the CEO of her campaign, Kamala, Incorporated. And how she's running it is how she should be judged in one way, but how she's gonna run the government, including her having been vice president, and who she picks for vice president. And that will stand in stark contrast to the worst pick in the history of America other than Sarah Palin. And that is Donald Trump picking Shady Vance.

Look, I think Shady Vance was even worse than Sarah Palin. And you mentioned one thing too that's always worth repeating. In the 2020 election, President Biden won by over 7 million votes. The Electoral College was a wipeout also in favor of President Biden. You know, when I see the maps and the various polls right now, see the maps and the various polls right now, think back and I go, President Biden won with 306 of the electoral votes from the electoral college. It wasn't even close. And so when we talk about all of the heinous acts, Donald Trump committed to try to overthrow the results of the 2020 election. When we see how the Republican Party has gone full MAGA and in 2024 they want to whine about

the 2020 election and I reflect back to 2000 when there actually was a very, very close election where there was a lot of issues. And Michael Popak, you were in Florida at that time. You were actively involved in supporting democracy and supporting the Gore campaign. But there, what we had was a few hundred hanging chads and whether the perforation was fully to be counted or not. That is simply not what happened in 2020. Trump got wiped out. And the fact that they then went to oh there are secret satellite dishes that

are connected from bunkers in Italy that somehow deal with Hugo Chavez coming back from the dead and transporting bamboo from China and the fact that a major political party the Republican Party went full MAGA pushed out mainstream Republicans and embraced this ridiculousness in something that wasn't close. We need to just say that in simple terms. And in 2024, they're running on whining about 2020 that tells you everything you need to know. And that shouldn't be a Democratic position or a Republican, that should just be a common sense position.

And then when they go, oh, there's no way that Joe Biden got 81 million, there's no way that could happen. That's not an argument. You went in front of various judges, you lost over and over again. And now though, the right wing has Trump judges on the Supreme Court who now said,

you know what? Dictatorship. Let's just do dictatorship. Absolute immunity. We'll have one of our Supreme Court justices, Clarence Thomas, just be bribed millions of dollars. And y'all can know about it. But what are you going to do? President Biden has a plan.

I want to talk about that plan when we come back from our last break of the show. President Biden's Supreme Court reforms. I want to remind everybody about our Patreon Zoom meeting on Monday. If you want to meet Michael Popak, ask him your legal questions and get other updates, other lectures, go to patreon.com slash legal AF, patreon.com slash legal AF. We don't have outside investors here at the Midas Touch Network. So one of the ways we build this platform is with your support and get it, get this with your support. More views than Fox, CNN and MSNBC on digital. 26 million views every 48 hours making the Midas Touch Network the number one of all YouTube across all categories, although there was a few days

this past week where the Olympics edged us out by oh so slight and we'll be right back after our last quick break. Have you heard about NAD+, it's one of the most important molecules in the human body to age well. NAD+, helps promote cellular energy, maintain healthy DNA, detect nutrients efficiently, supports detoxification and supports your cellular health. Simply put, keeping your NAD+, levels high is vital to helping the body feel youthful. But did you know NAD plus levels plummet with age? So by age 50, most people's NAD plus levels are only half of what they were at age 20.

Luckily, science has discovered a way to boost your NAD plus levels up to 50%. And it's called Qualia NAD Plus, a groundbreaking supplement from Qualia. The reason so many health experts use Qualia NAD Plus, a groundbreaking supplement from Qualia. The reason so many health experts use Qualia themselves, and the reason I'm proud to have them sponsor this podcast is you're simply not going to find more carefully researched, life-changing nutritional formulas,

especially for aging well. Qualia NAD Plus is a supplement that includes ingredients called NAD plus precursors that your body can convert into NAD plus to boost your levels up to 50% qualia and AD plus is a clinically tested and Naturopathic doctor formulated look I want to feel 30 when I'm 58 that's why I'm staying at the cutting edge of aging research and That's why I'm staying at the cutting edge of aging research and boosting my NAD plus levels with Qualia NAD plus is taking a huge part of how well I age

and putting it in my control. After just a month on Qualia NAD plus, I'm feeling support and vitality return that I haven't felt in years. To boost your NAD plus levels up to 50%, go to qualialife.com slash truth for up to 50% off and use code TRUTH at checkout for an additional 15% off. That's qualialife.com slash truth

for an extra 15% off your purchase. Thanks Qualia for sponsoring today's episode. What kind of night is it? Is it a single? Double. A triple? I'm not talking about alcohol. I'm talking about Soles Out of Office Micro Dose THC gummies

in three strengths. Plus no hangover. Out of Office gummies come in 1.5 milligram, three milligram and six milligram doses and three delicious flavors. We love them for clearing your inbox, winding down after work, or listening to your favorite podcasts like Legal AF

or heading out to a party. Raise your gummies, not your glasses. This podcast is sponsored by Sol. Sol's new out of office gummies are perfectly micro-dosed with hemp-derived THC and CBD to give any day that chillin' on the beach vibe. Did you know you can now buy hemp-derived THC products in all 50 states?

So how can Seoul send you THC products no matter where in the US you live? Because of the 2018 Farm Bill, hemp-derived THC is now legal and accessible nationwide. Out of office gummies gives you that warm, fuzzy, euphoric microdose feeling without sending it to the moon. The Soul team suggests you start

by eating half to one gummy, then wait 45 minutes to one hour to start feeling the effects. Microdoses of THC keep me feeling good without the anxious thoughts. And that's not all Soul's got. Whether you're looking for a sleep aid, enhanced focus, or pain relief,

Soul has all your wellness needs covered. So give Soul a try. Head to GetSoul.com and use code LegalAF for 30% off your order. That's 30% off your order using code LegalAF. One last time, getsold.com and code LegalAF for 30% off. We are back. Great ad reads there, Michael Popak.

You know, look, I think it's very important that President Biden is taking a strong position on Supreme Court reform. I think that the overwhelming majority of American people support reforming the Supreme Court and recognize that the constituency of the Supreme Court and what they are doing, taking away our freedoms, is just simply not reflective of the American population.

It is reflective of a Frankensteinian right wing agenda of a Federalist society and of, you know, these right wing zealots who have generationally worked to create a system where they hold back the pendulum of progress through these ridiculous and frankly despicable rulings taking away our freedoms. They took away the women's right to reproductive freedom. They took away Roe v. Wade. They overturned precedent after they all sat there and gave testimony saying that they were not going to do that. They lied under oath. They've taken away the separation of church and state and removed the decades-long lemon test.

They've taken away decades-long precedent regarding the ability of agencies to deal with things like securities fraud and environmental regulation. They've gutted the Civil Rights Act. They've gutted the Voting Act. They've gutted what that really was at the core of this big, beautiful, but messy place that is America with these freedoms that we cherished and perhaps to some extent even took for granted they would always be there. And instead, they've also put in place a regime where bump stocks can proliferate,

where the test of whether a gun restriction is allowed is some arbitrary view towards what would the founders say despite the fact that there were no AR-15s there, and unless the founders would have prohibited things that didn't even exist, then they can't be regulated, which creates a test to allow the rampant proliferation of guns. So when you actually talk about issues, America actually isn't very divided, but there are points, viruses within our system that divides us. One is corporate media and right-wing propaganda. Corporate media both sides the issues. Right-wing propaganda just spews lies and hate, and they want us to be divided talking about things like an Algerian fight against an Italian fighter in the Olympics and how the Olympics should regulate itself and somehow that should become an issue in the presidential election.

Don't forget Fox is the one that lies about Democrats are coming for your dishwasher, somehow Mr. Potato Head has gone woke. Apparently to them Algeria, where it's illegal to be gay, that they've gone woke also apparently. I mean watching this whole bizarre, wokey thing on an international stage, you wonder what the world thinks about the you know the United States of America and how mad it's got it. But when you focus on the issues on gun control, on climate, on women's reproductive rights, on a living wage, on protecting social security, on expanding healthcare, you go through the list on equality, on LGBTQ plus rights. Americans generally are in agreement on these issues,

about 70%. Yet you have these rights being gutted and eroded and Americans being pit against Americans. The part that we focus on here, although the Midas Touch focuses on the other aspects, here it's the intersection of law and politics. The Supreme Court's decision making running counter to the will of we the people is a problem. And President Biden is saying we need to reform that. Michael Popak, tell us about the reforms and

tell us what happens next. And ultimately, I think it's going to come down to the election. But people need to know that what's really at stake also is the Supreme Court. Yeah, what we're watching is patriots coming together of all different parties and colors to defend democracy all before our very eyes. It's a process. If people were wondering what President Biden was going to do for the last six months, getting and freeing hostages using his

long-standing diplomatic and NATO relationships to accomplish that is a good start. He's going to address the war that was brought to the door of Israel. He's going to focus on Supreme Court reform. There's a lot to do for a very vibrant and focused and dedicated president like Joe Biden to be and that ball will be carried by Madam President Kamala Harris, who is in support because this is the Biden-Harris administration, always was and always will be carried by Madam President Kamala Harris, who is in support, because this is the Biden-Harris administration, always was and always will be. Now will just be the Harris fill in the blank.

We'll know over the weekend, likely who our vice president's gonna be. And what they're gonna do, and the two moments that kind of came together, the collision of two worlds that came together, is you got Judge Ludic, who I'm gonna be interviewing for my Distention Legal AF next week, who is leading an American Bar Association initiative to have lawyers of every party and

no party join together to protect democracy and at the polls. I've been involved as a lawyer for the Democratic Party in election, in precincts, as a poll watcher, in courts, and I've done that and I'll continue to do that. And I'll be doing that again down in Florida come the November 5th election on behalf of the Democrats. But Judge Ludwig's initiative is broader than that. Talks about having, and he's a Republican, he's a conservative, and he's a Federalist, but has decided that his patriotism and his love of country and his love of the Constitution and what he's watching with his eyes happen at the United States Supreme Court, he can't stand on the side, he can't be on the

sideline, and he's got to lead that initiative. At the same time, we've seen the evolution of President Biden. President Biden, a year and a half ago, a year ago, impaneled a blue ribbon panel to get together and make recommendations about what should be done about the Supreme Court before we got all these terrible decisions, just off of the Dobbs decision two years ago, so to speak, reversing a constitutional right for a woman to choose and have reproductive rights and be equal to a man in this society. That panel came back with a bunch of recommendations, more Supreme Court justices, term limits on Supreme Court justices, and different things. At the time, either because

President Biden didn't see the political will for it, didn't want to take on that fight, he had some other bigger fish to fry at the moment, he sort of let that moment pass. But now it's perfect because he, it's not lame duck. We're not watching lame duck Joe Biden. We're watching unshackled Joe Biden. Joe Biden doesn't have to worry about getting reelected Joe Biden. He can, he was never, his leadership and love of country always overcame, and selflessness always overcame the political transactional component of also being the head of a party when you're the president, always with him. And now we're just seeing it writ large, right? Now it's just like he just burnt, I feel like Superman coming out of the, out of the telephone booth. It's just super Joe Biden, you know, and, and, and nobody should fear him more than the Republicans. Joe Biden not have to worry about doing anything other than on the political side, supporting his vice president, which he has done and will continue to do, and helping her get elected to keep the legacy of the Biden Harris and what they accomplished in that body of work. And she's not going to run away from it.

I know that's the problem with the Republican argument. They think they're going to keep trying to pin what happened during the Biden Harris administration on Kamala Harris. And she's like, let me put it right on my chest. I want to. That's what I want. I want to, that's what I want. I want to embrace all of our accomplishments. And so Joe Biden now, this is the moment

when he can get through a big idea, a heavy lift, like the reformation of the United States Supreme Court, term limits on Supreme Court justices, the ones that we hate and have been out of lockstep with the American people and their values, instead of shoving down our throats Christian values and right-wing MAGA values and Federalist Society values and Project 2025 values, they'd be term limited off already if that were the case. Sotomayor might be too. So, you got to, you know, this runs both ways, term limits, okay? More Supreme Court justices,

that would be nice. Why is it nine? It's not in the Constitution. I know why there's one president. I know sort of the math around why we have as many congressmen as we have, congresspeople as we have, why we have as many senators as we have. I get that from the Constitution. But why nine? Because Chief Justice Marshall and others, we didn't always have nine. We had less in the past. We've never had more, but we've had less, I believe. So more. More would make them a representative body and would allow them to get in lockstep with where we are as a culture. Because as you said, Ben, and I've seen this also, this parlor trick played as well. When you line up the Republican values and their platform and you take away the, and you do the same for the Republicans.

And where they stand on women's rights, immigration rights, the economy, foreign policy, and everything else that matters to us, environment, things like that. And you take the labels off, right? It's like the old Coke versus Pepsi test. You just cover the cans so nobody knows what they are. They're like, hmm, that's really good. You know, a Coke drinker picking Pepsi. By a large majority, people align themselves with

what ends up being the Democratic side. But when you put the labels on it, and you've got foreign powers through social media, combined with the the enemies within combined with the Supreme Court putting pinning us at each other's throats. That it becomes on i can't go for that that's a democratic that's a democratic position or democrat position as they like to say. And so adding on more people. Will help an ethics code that sticks. people will help. An ethics code that sticks and that applies. And so they don't just say this ridiculous tautology that Roberts and Clarence Thomas and Alito say, which is, it's ethical because we say it's ethical. It's ethical because we did it. And you can just presume they're not the pope. This isn't infallible pope time. They're not infallible. Obviously.

So now is that we have this groundswell of attention because of the constant bad conduct and misconduct of the Supreme Court on the right side. I mean, on the right wing. From Clarence Thomas to Alito, even to even to things that Roberts has done wrong and Gorsuch all coming to a head here. And so packing the court with more people, which Franklin Delano Roosevelt threatened, and that's how he got his New Deal passed. Suddenly the Supreme Court, which was against the New Deal said, hmm, we, we better start going along here with the president, or we're gonna have a problem. And so we're gonna see, but we're gonna see things. So if we get the ethics code, we get the term limit and we get more on there, that'll go a great way. I also like this other component of having a, it's not a fourth branch of government,

but having an independent prosecutor that's independent from the executive branch that goes after future presidents and people under the executive branch and having that codified. Now some of this he's going to be able to do through Congress. Sure somebody will challenge it to the Supreme Court and some of it he's going to have to do through a constitutional amendment which is much much harder. But this is an important conversation to have and what he can accomplish over the next six months. And if he can't accomplish it, he will lay the groundwork and the blueprint for it. And Kamala Harris has already announced that she supports this. This was

developed with her consultation and she will make it a centerpiece of her own campaign. The Supreme Court, as Elizabeth Warren recently said, is on the ballot, just like women's rights are on the ballot, reproductive rights are on the ballot. That's all on the ballot. And that is great for the Democrats because it makes people get off the couch and vote. I'll leave it on this Ben. One of the greatest accomplishments already of Kamala Harris is that she has excited the base in such a way that already 30% in polling, 30% more of major components of the Democratic Alliance necessary to win an election have said they're more likely to vote now because of Kamala Harris and for Kamala Harris than before.

That means Gen Z, that means other young voters, that means black and brown voters and women voters. And I'm not saying they weren't going to support Joe Biden at the end of the day, but they are happily, enthusiastically going to be supporting and trying for us so that you and I in November are talking about Madam Elect President Kamala Harris. You know, one of the things I noticed right away,

and everyone should be focused on this, when President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris brought the wrongfully detained prisoners back from Russia in a prison swap, what was the very first thing that Fox did? Do you think they covered that? No. What did they cover?

What I said before, the Algerian fighter versus the Italian fighter, and they tried to create a culture war issue to divide us against each other. Why are they doing that? Because that's all they have. All they have are these culture wars to pit us against each other, and what we have to do is recognize that and let others know who can fall in that bubble of culture wars, that all of that is a ploy to get those people to vote against their own interests. We as voters should be a little bit selfish in the sense of what's good for me, what's good for my family, what's good for my community, what's good for my state, what's good for my family? What's good for my community? What's good for my state?

What's good for my country? What's good for my world? Trust me, that's what these billionaires and decamillionaires are focused on and they are trying to feed people these issues to pit

them against each other, to trick them into voting against their own interests. So ultimately, the billionaires and decamillionaires can bribe their Supreme Court justices and stack the court and get all of these immunities and exemptions and no agency regulations. So they can be free to do what they want to do, cut corners, get extra benefits, and try to screw the rest of us over. We have to recognize that that's the hustle.

And that hustle is often used through poison pills at the intersection of law and politics. So we have to see their poison pills and we the people have to be the antidote. And that's the key thing that we try to discuss here on the Midas Touch Network and on Legal AF. Let's empower this whole community with the knowledge to be the antidote, to fight back against

the right wings poison pills that they're trying to continue to kind of slip in for their own benefit and to our detriment, to we the people's detriment. I want to thank everybody for watching this weekend's episode of Legal AF. Reminder, Monday morning we will be having a Zoom meeting. If you ever wanted to meet Michael Popak or me, but I know you really want to meet Michael Popok or me, but I know you really wanna meet Michael Popok, you've seen enough of me, we're doing a partner and associate meeting.

You have to sign up at patreon.com slash Legal AF. We don't have outside investors, so it is a kind of fun way to help support the growth of this independent media platform. Patreon.com slash Legal AF AF sign up right now on the feed. There is the link where Michael Popok and I will be taking your questions. We are thrilled to meet you, to see you on Monday morning.

Again, at 11 Eastern, eight Pacific, we will see you there on Monday. Store.mitustouch.com is crushing it also. Lots of great Kamala gear, lots of great Legal AF gear. Store.mitustouch.com setting records on the merch part of the site as well. Store.mitustouch.com. Popak, love spending the weekend with you.

Legal AFers love spending the weekend, especially with you. Thank you everybody. We'll see you next weekend on Legal AF. Shout out to the Midas.